Cliffs of Clay

Cliffs of clay with rocks and mud,
Brought by ice so long ago;
Dragged from lands so far away,
In freezing times of ice and snow.

Cliffs of clay have shed their load,
Pebbles now upon the sand;
Rocks and fossils, minerals too,
Smoothed and polished as waves withstand.

Cliffs of clay, so soft, unstable,
Attacked by wind and waves;
Homes and churches, graves and bodies,
No longer rest - the sea their graves.

Cliffs of clay, so much revealed,
What remains as yet concealed?

11 April 2017

This sonnet-like poem was written with reference to the Holderness coast of East Yorkshire.  A boulder clay coastline notorious for its retreat under the attack of North Sea waves.  The very varied rocks in the clay came from Scandinavia and more northern parts of Britain. These contain minerals and fossil traces in fragments of water-worn igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks – many colourful.   Over the centuries many villages have disappeared giving rise to many tales of bells tolling out to sea, bodies and ghosts from times long past.  Remember Colden Parva, Monkwell, and Hyde and many more…….  Please see the poems St Helen’s and the Ghosts of Kilnsea and Clap hands for Hornsea.